There are many ways on how people want to preserve culture. It is well known that as the years pass, some old traditions begin to vanish, replaced by modern norms. For most Malawians however, memories of growing up in the village, sitting down while attentively listening to the elderly narrating stories just before going to bed , still lingers in their minds. For one Malawian writer however, seeing the tradition of the elders sitting down and telling stories to their kids back in the villages ,is one thing she was determined to revive or let alone to capture so that all should not be lost . Yes, the children of the future should relive of the wonderful stories that their great grandparents used to tell.
As a seasoned writer , Patricia Kulipa Chimangeni’s work has been read by many as she has written short stories and poetry that has been published in some of Malawi’s publications in the past. But the Malawian born, Manchester resident has completely managed to seek a completely new readership as she has released her debut book, The Whirlwinds of Ndonda.
Chimangeni has drawn inspiration from her childhood in Malawi to craft a book that is a collection of those sweet stories that the elders used to tell to their young ones that blends fictional and historical characters and events. The book is set in the village of Ndonda
“Ndonda is an actual village In Malawi, it was time we needed to preserve those interesting stories that our elders used to tell us. Especially in modern days when we have a lot of Malawians living in diaspora, we needed something to connect the young ones to Malawi as a cultural preservation while at the same time reminding the elderly of the good old days “said Chimangeni
The book has been self-published and has already hit the shelves with copies being sold on Amazon , and for the technological savvy’s able to purchase the book as a kindle version. The book was edited by one of Malawi’s great writers Charles Simango.
Chimangeni spoke highly of Malawian writers, encouraging the youths to never give up but continue the art of writing. “Malawi is blessed with writers, I myself got inspiration from the likes of Professor Chmombo, Sunduzwayo Madise in the early days” She also urged Malawians to be supportive by buying these books
The Whirwinds of Ndonda will not be the first and last for the writer as she is geared to work on more books that will aim at preserving and promoting Malawian culture.
